Hat-holder.



No. 735,208. PATENTED AUG. 4, 1903. A. B. CARLISLE.

HAT HOLDER.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 2, 1902.

N0 MODEL.

@5% fw' 'M mi mums Psx-Ens co, Pwofovum UNITED STATES Patented August 4, 1903.l

PATENT OEEICE.

HAT-HOLDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 735,208, dated Augustfl, 1903.

Application filed August 2,1902.

Beit known that I, ALPHoNso B. CARLISLE, a citizen ofthe United States,residing at Chattanooga, in the county of Hamilton and State of Tennessee, have invented new and useful Improvements in Hat-Holders, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to hat-holders, and more especially to a hat-retaining devicedesigned for retaininga ladys hat against movement or displacement within a tray of a trunk, traveling-case, or the like; and it has for its object to provide an extremely simple device of the character referred to that will occupy but small space and will securely hold a hat against movement in any direction and which may be readily adjusted to hold hats of varying sizes and which after it has been adjusted to retain the hat in place `may be securely locked in its adj usted position.

It also has for a further object to provide a device of the nature referred to which may be fitted to trays of hat-boxes of different sizes.

To these ends myinvention consists in the features and in the construction, combination, and arrangement of parts hereinafter described, and particularly pointed out in the claims following the description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forining a part of this specification, wherein- Figure l is a vertical sectional view of my improved hat-holder as applied to a trunk hat-box. Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof. Fig. 3 is an end View, the guide-casing being shown in section. Fig. 4 is an end view of the guide-casing, and Fig. 5 is a detail view illustrating means for locking the milled knob against movement.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral l indicates a base, which may conveniently consist of the bottom of a tray or hat-box of a trunk or traveling-case or the like. Attached to the base 1 is a guide-casing 2, consisting of an elongated metal bar or strip, preferably rectangular in cross-section, and provided intermediate its ends with laterally-projecting flanges 3, which may be conveniently secured to the base l by screws, as shown. The guidecasing 2 is provided on its under side and throughout its entire length with a rectangular groove 4, in which are adapted to reciprocate in opposite directions the hat-retaining Serial No. 118,192. (No model.)

devices now to be described. Each of said devices comprises a bar 5 or Grectangular in cross-section and of a size to'snugly fit within the guide-casing and yet freely move endwise therein. The bar 5 is cut away on its upper side from a point midway between its ends to nearly its inner end, and said cut-away portion is transversely grooved on its upper side to form cogs or teeth 7. The other bar 6 is correspondingly cut away on its under side, and it is provided with cogs or teeth 8. One 0f said bars 6 overlaps the other of said bars 5, and said overlapping portions are freely movable one over the other. Passing transversely through the guide casing 2 and between the bars 5 and 6 is a cogged shaft 9, which will be more'fully hereinafter described, by turning which said arms are caused to move in opposite directions. The bars 5 and 6 are each provided at its outer end with a vertically upwardly extending arm 10, which is provided at its upper end with a horizontally and outwardly projecting pin 1l, each of said pins having fitted over its base or inner portion a button 12. Said pins, when the hat is placed over the device and when the bars 5 and 6 are projected upwardly, project into the interior of the hat and hold the latter in position. The upper side of the bar 6 throughout its entire length has a fiat bearing against the top of the groove 4 of the guide-casing, and its cogged surface 7 engages the cog-shaft 9, hereinbefore referred to, and said bar 6 at its upper end is provided with a foot or downwardly-extending projection 13, which bears on the upper side of the tray, and in this manner said arm is firmly held against displacement in any of its adjusted positions. its upper cogged surface against the said cogged shaft and on its under side has a dat bearing throughout its entire length -on the bottom of the tray. In order that the bar 5 may be prevented from having any upwardlytilting movement when projected outwardly from the guide-casing, said guide-casing has formed on one end two shoulders 14, which bear against the upper side of the bar and hold it down against its seat on the bottom of the tray. Preferably corresponding shoulders l5 are formed at the opposite ends of the guide-casing and bear against the upper side The bar 5 bears at ICO of the bar 6. The shoulders 14 and 1l5 are formed on the inner sides of parallel exten-` sions 16, which form continuations of the sides of the guide-casing. Said extensions 16, when the bearings 5 and 6 are moved in as far as they will go, embrace the arms 10. By forming the extensions 16 on the end of the guide-casing I am enabled to provide the shoulders 14 and 15 without obstructing the groove 4 in said casing, and, moreover, said extensions act as shields to protect the arms 10 when the device is not in use and when said arms are moved into their innermost position, for when in this position and the arms are not protected by a hat placed thereover said arms might be liable to be broken or bent were it not that they were embraced on both sides by the extensions 16. The inner extremity of each of the bars 5 and Gis provided with a {iange 17, which extends toward the other bar, said anges when the bars have been projected outwardly to their outermost limit abutting the cogged shaft 9 and .preventing the bars from being projected entirely from without the guide-casing.

The numeral- 18 indicates a shaft which is longitudinally grooved or corrugated for a' relatively considerable distance at one end to form the cogs 9, which project transversely through the guide-casing 2 and between and in engagement with the cogs 7 and 8 of the rack-bars 5 and 6. The sides of the guidecasing 2 are perforated, as at 19, to permit the passage therethrough of the cogged end 9 of the shaft 18, and the flanges 3 are grooved, as at 20, said grooves being in alinement with the perforations 19 to receive the cogged end of the shaft. The opposite end of the shaft 18 is loosely journaled in a bearing 21, which is provided with anges 22, which are screwed to the bottom of the tray. The shaft 18 projects slightly through the bearing 21 and has fixed thereon a milled or cogged knob 23, by means of which said shaft may be conveniently rotated by hand. It will be obvious that by rotating the shaft 1S by means of the knob 23 the arms 10, carrying the pins, may be moved in or out-that is to say, may be caused to approach or recede from each other. In order to hold the arms 10 in any position to which they may be adjusted, I provide a spring-pawl 24, which may be conveniently attached to one of the danges 22 of the bearing 21, the free end of said pawl normally engaging the cogs of the knob 23. When it is desired to turn the shaft, the pawl may be en-` gaged by one of the operators iingers and thrown out of engagement with the knob 23,

with elongated cogs or teeth, as shown, the guide-casing may be arranged in the center ofthe box and the end of the shaft against the sides thereof in hat-boxes of varying sizes, the said elongated teeth permitting the shaft to be adjusted relatively to the guidecasing.

The operation of my invention will be readily understood. The arms 10 being in their retracted position, the hat is placed thereover, resting on the bottom of the box. Then by disengaging the spring-pawlfrom the knob 23 and turning the latter in the proper direction the rack-bars 5 and 6, and with them the arms 10, will be projected outwardly until the pins 11 engage and enter the inner sides of the crown of the hat and the buttons 12 abut said inner sides of the hat. The pins 11 are made comparatively short, so that they will not project through the crown of an ordinary hat and will not therefore disarrange or injure the hat-trimmings, and the buttons l2 Will prevent the arms 10 from coming in contact with the hat and injuring its shape. After the arms have been adjusted to the proper position the spring-pawl on being released will engage the corrugated knob 23 and will hold said arms and the pins and buttons carried thereby in their adj usted position, thus firmly holding the hat in place in the box. By means ofthe arrangement described I am enabled to obtain a great latitude of adjustment of the hat-retaining device, so that hats of any size, from the smallet to the largest, may be securely retained in place within the box without injury to the hat. Y

I have described my improved hat-holder as being especially designed for use in connection with trunk hat-boxes; but it will be manifest that it may be employed in connection with various other receptacles for holding hats, and therefore where I employ the term base said base may constitute the bottom of a trunk-tray, hat-box, or any other receptacle that may be used for a similar purpose.

Having described my invention, what I claim is- 1. In a hat-holder, the combination with a guide-casing, of two overlapping rack-bars movably arranged therein, upwardly-projecting. arms on the outer ends of each of said rack-bars, outwardly-projecting pins on the upper ends of the arms, a cogged shaft arranged between the rack-bars, a milled knob fixed on said shaft, and a spring-pawl arranged to engage said knob, substantially as described.

2. In a hat-holder, the combination with a guide-casing, of two overlapping rack-bars movablyarranged therein, upwardly-project ing arms on the outer ends of said rack-bars, outwardly-projecting pins on the upper ends of the arms, a shaft provided with elongated cog-teeth on one end thereof, said cogged end of the shaft being arranged between the overlapping ends of said rack-bars, a bearing in which the ether end of said shaft is journaled, and means for turning said shaft for moving the arms toward or from each other, substantially as described.

3. In a hat-holder, the combination with a base, ot' a guide-casing attached to said base and longitudinally grooved on its under side, of overlapping bars movably arranged in said groove and provided on their adjacent sides for a portion of their length with rack-teeth, upwardly-projecting arms on the ends of said bars, outwardly-projecting pins on the upper ends of said arms, and a cogged shaft arranged between the toothed portions of said bars to move the latter toward and from each other, substantially as described.

4. In a hat-holder, the combination with a base, of a guide-casing attached thereto and longitudinally grooved on its under side, the sides of said casing being provided at their opposite ends with parallel extensions, overlapping bars movably arranged in said groove and provided on their adjacent faces and for a portion of their length with rack-teeth, upwardly-projecting arms on the outer ends of the bars, and provided at their upper ends with outwardly-projecting teeth,andacogged shaft arranged between the toothed overlapping bars for moving the latter in opposite directions, the said arms when in their retracted positions resting between said parallel extensions, substantiallyas described.

5. In a hat-holder, the combination with a base, of a guide-casing secured thereto and grooved longitudinally on its under side, the sides of said guide-casing being provided with parallel extensions, overlapping bars movably arranged in said groove and provided for a portion of their length on their adjacent faces with rack-teeth, upwardly-projecting arms on the outer ends of said bars, outwardly-V projecting pins on the upper ends of said arms, shoulders formed on the upper inner sides of the said extensions and engaging the parallel sides of the bars, and a cogged shaft arranged between the toothed overlapping ends of the bars for moving the latter in opposite directions, substantially as described.

6. In a hat-holder, the combination with a guidepasing, of two overlapping rack-bars Inovably arranged therein and provided at their inner ends with inwardly-projecting anges, a cogged shaft arranged between said rack-bars for moving the latter in opposite directions, upwardly-projecting arms carried by the rack-bars, and outwardly-projecting pins in the upper ends of said arms, substantially as described.

7. In a hat-holder, the combination with a base, ot a guide-casing attached thereto and longitudinally grooved on its underside, of two bars movably arranged in said groove, the inner ends of said bars upon their inner adjacent faces being cut away and provided with rack-teeth, one of said bars overlapping the other, the lowermost bar resting on the base and the uppermost bar being provided at its outer end with a downwardly-projecting foot arranged to travel on the base, and a cogged shaft arranged between the toothed ends of said overlapping bars for moving the latter in opposite directions, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ALPHONSO B. CARLISLE.

Witnesses:

R. H. WILLIAMS, J. M. TRIMBLE. 

